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| Plot Summary of The Turning |
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"In the spring of 1991 Tanya, a 17-year-old Russian ballerina and member of the Kirov Ballet Corps from Leningrad, is chosen to take part in the troupe's tour of Paris. When she arrives she is encouraged by Vera, another ballerina, to try and escape the ever-watchful KGB agents, defect with her to France, and leave the Soviet Union for ever.
Vera's family became rich through her father's dealings on the black market dealings, while Tanya's family are much poorer and have sacrificed much to help her pursue her career. Her parents and her grandfather were always politically active during the power struggle between Gorbachev and Yeltsin, and major changes in the Soviet Union. Vera longs to get away from Russia, while Tanya sees defection as a way to improve her ambitions in the ballet.
Caught up in her country's struggle for democracy, Tanya's dream of a better life in the west is soon challenged by new hope for her country's future. She sees she must make a choice between one or the other, and when she falls in love with an artist who is about to be caught up in possibly illegal business to pay for the medicine his grandmother badly needs, her choice becomes more difficult still.
"
John Van der Kiste, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of The Turning |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- depressed
Time/era of story
- 1980's-1999
Life of a profession:
- dancer
Struggle over
- special abilities
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Age 11-14
War/Revolt/Disaster on civilians
Yes
Job/Profession/Status story
Yes
Conflict:
- Russian commies!
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- actor/actress/producer
Age:
- a teen
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Russian
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- an organization
Age:
- long-lived adults
Profession/status:
- politician/elected ruler
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 5 (an average amount)
Europe
Yes
European country:
- France
Asia/Pacific
Yes
Asian country:
- Russia
Misc setting
- fancy mansion
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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